(San Francisco, CA) 4/29/2013:
Thumbtack.com, in partnership with the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, has
released the second-annual Thumbtack.com Small Business
Friendliness Survey showing that both Denver and Colorado
performed well in this year's rankings. In addition to high marks for its
overall small business friendliness, the city was praised for its training
programs aimed at small businesses.

The Thumbtack.com Small Business Friendliness Survey is the only
survey to obtain data from an extensive, nationwide universe of job creators
and entrepreneurs in order to determine the most business-friendly locations.
While there are various "business climate rankings” that rate locations as good
or bad for business, there are no others that draw upon considerable data from
small business owners themselves.

"Practical
resources and responsive city leaders go a long way towards creating a
business-friendly atmosphere,” said Sander Daniels, co-founder of
Thumbtack.com. "Denver small businesses expressed satisfaction that the city is
supplying both of these.”

Some of the key findings for Denver - and Colorado generally - include:

Denver earned an 'A-' grade for its
overall small business friendliness, bettering last year's 'B+'.

Small businesses gave the city a 'B+'
for its licensing regulations and a 'B+' for the quality and availability
of the city's training and networking programs.

Colorado also improved, going from an
'A-' in 2012 to an 'A' grade in 2013. The state also ranked in the top 10
for its online small business resources.

Nationally, professional licensing
requirements were more important to small business owners than taxes in
determining a state’s overall business-friendliness, confirming the
findings from last year’s study.

African-American and Hispanic small
business owners were more likely than their white counterparts to
encourage others to start a new business.

Although Denver performed well overall,
local small businesses gave the city a 'C+' for its zoning regulations for
a second year.

"It is critical to the economic health of
every city and state to create an entrepreneur-friendly environment,” said Dane
Stangler, director of Research and Policy at the Kauffman Foundation.
"Policymakers put themselves in the best position to encourage sustainable
growth and long-term prosperity by listening to the voices of small business
owners themselves.”

The full survey
results can be seen here and include full sets of rankings, easily searchable
quotes from Denver small businesses, regional comparisons within states, and
Census data comparing Denver's key demographics against those of other cities.

"Denver
has been a small business-friendly city. Mayor Hancock has an initiative offering
networking, classes and other resources which I have found helpful. Denver
Metro Small Business Development Center has also been a useful online
resource."